Smoothies

I had a request for smoothie ideas.
So, I'm going to tell you right now. In my experience of smoothies, you need a blender.
I've tried stick blenders, and they don't work as great as a real blender.

You can do smoothies several ways.
I prefer to use frozen fruit, instead of fresh for a few reasons.
You don't have to add ice because the fruit is frozen, which gives you more options. Not to mention the blades sometimes have a hard time chopping the ice and it dulls the blade.

For a basic smoothie. I use one cup of frozen fruit, a scoop of protein powder if I'm going to make a meal out of it, agave nectar, or honey
A spoonful of peanut butter works good in case you don't want the taste of the protein powder.

One of my favorite smoothies I created, is:
one cup frozen blueberries
one small container of low to nonfat yogurt ( i like vanilla or blueberry but you can mix flavors if you like)
3/4 - 1 cup Minute Maid Pomegranate Blueberry blend juice (they have a few types) or any kind of juice works.
Just blend until smooth and pour into a cup

Another I like is:
one cup of tropical fruit (frozen) (this medley usually has strawberries, mango chunks, papaya chunks, and pineapple chunks)
One cup pineapple juice
One small container of pina colada yogurt (or I just use plain vanilla)
Blend and pour into a glass :)

These smoothies are NOT sugar free, but they don't boost my blood sugar up that much, especially if I add a good heaping of fresh ground cinnamon.

Speaking of cinnamon.. If you like fresh baked apple pie..

Caramel Apple Pie Smoothie
One apple cored (if you don't like the skin peel it)
1 graham cracker broken up
one small container vanilla or apple yogurt (freeze first)
dash of cinnamon
sprinkle of agave nectar or spoonful of brown sugar splenda
Blend until smooth and serve it up


Strawberry Banana smoothie
One cup frozen strawberries
One whole banana
One cup orange juice or strawberry banana juice (any kind of juice works)
One cup vanilla or plain yogurt
Blend and serve

Get creative. Try to use frozen fruit, and yogurt together.
You can add protein powder with it or in it's place.
Agave nectar adds a good healthy sweetness.
Juice is okay but full of sugar. Try to water it down before adding it if you are diabetic.
I like to use fresh coconut milk when I can.
You can add cinnamon to reduce sugar generated in your body.
Let me know if you try any of these :)